Clint Eastwood appeared on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Friday to discuss a number of issues ranging from his now-famous “empty chair” speech at the RNC, to Washington’s apparent inability to do anything productive.

When CNBC’s Becky Quick asked Eastwood what he thinks of the “empty chair” speech in retrospect, knowing that some called it embarrassing while others still reference it as a crystallization of the Obama presidency, Eastwood remarked: “You know, the one thing about getting into the senior status of life you don’t really care. You just say what you say and then you can get away with it.”

In this Aug. 30, 2012 file photo, actor Clint Eastwood speaks to an empty chair while speaking to delegates at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. (Photo: AP)

But what’s really grabbing headlines was Eastwood’s words for Washington.

Who’s doing these? I mean, you got a big staff, a lot of people. Isn’t anybody helping? Isn’t anybody jumping in there? People going places on expensive rides. Let’s get in there and get it done.

On the average American’s role in mess:

I think [elected officials] have to hear from the public out there. And maybe the public is a little lackadaisical as far as– you know, most– the average laymen out there sitting– going, “Well, nothing I can do about it. So I’ll just wait it out.” But meanwhile– you know, I don’t want to wait too long.

And on Simpson-Bowles and a debt reduction plan:

They were just dismissed and that was the end of it. And that’s kind of– it’s almost like they don’t give a damn. And so if they don’t give a damn, why did they expect anybody else to? And obviously they’ll– you know, people get complacent and then things really go bad.

[…]

Somebody’s got to give somewhere along the line. And if they don’t give then it’ll just be more of the same. Then we’ll slip back into recession again which is what– would be very worrisome this time.

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